Politics Beyond Left and Right: A Guide for Creating a More Unified Nation

By David A Ellison

Politics Beyond Left and Right is a call for nonpartisan leadership from our government, and a call for only electing federal officials that will honor the wishes of the 60% to 80% of us who believe in a federal government that is smaller and more fiscally responsible than what Democrats prefer, but more socially accepting than what Rep

• Language: English
• Publisher: David A. Ellison
• Release date: Mar 17, 2017
• ISBN: 9780692833674

Book preview

Politics Beyond Left and Right

A Guide for Creating a More Unified Nation

David A. Ellison

Copyright © 2017 by David A. Ellison

First edition 2017

All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.

Print ISBN: 978-0-692-83366-7

Ebook ISBN: 978-0-692-83367-4

Printed in the United States

Cover design by Linda Kosarin/The Art Department

Typeset by Raymond Luczak

To the Founders of this great country and those

who still want to create a more perfect Union

Contents

Introduction

Chapter 1: Always Remember Why Our Ancestors Came to America

Chapter 2: Political Parties Are Not Good vs. Evil

Chapter 3: We Need Better Dialogue

Chapter 4: Racism

Chapter 5: Education

Chapter 6: The Declaration of Independence & the U.S. Constitution

Chapter 7: God-Fearing & Disciplined

Chapter 8: What Should We Expect from Our Federal Government?

Chapter 9: What Has the Disregard of the Constitution Cost Us?

Chapter 10: Time to Heed President Kennedy’s Call to Action

Chapter 11: Time for a Thorough Government Audit

Chapter 12: Is Economic Success Still Achievable by the Masses?

Chapter 13: Income Inequality

Chapter 14: Minimum Wage

Chapter 15: Our Over-Regulated Society

Chapter 16: Term Limits

Chapter 17: Tax Code

Chapter 18: Social Security

Chapter 19: Employer-Sponsored Benefit Plans

Chapter 20: Immigration

Chapter 21: Abortion

Chapter 22: Gay/Lesbian Rights

Chapter 23: Other Important Issues to Consider

Chapter 24: Conclusion

The Declaration of Independence

The Constitution of the United States of America

Amendments to the Constitution of the United States of America.

Endnotes

Acknowledgments

About the Author

Introduction

"Clowns to the left of me,

Jokers to the right, here I am,

Stuck in the middle with you."

The lyrics from Stealers Wheel’s famous song seem a fitting and appropriate way to describe how many, if not most, Americans feel about the current state of the political climate. Because the Democrats (Left) and Republicans (Right) in Washington, DC can hardly agree on anything, our country seems to be led by clowns and jokers, rather than elected officials who, in the interest of their constituents and the nation as a whole, should be preserving, protecting, and defending the Constitution of the United States of America.

Politically, this leaves most Americans feeling, as Stealers Wheel puts it, stuck in the middle. I refer to those of us in the middle as Centrists, a term you may have heard, but one not often clearly and concisely defined. Simply, Centrists like some of the ideas from the Democratic side of the aisle and some from the Republican side. Centrists are not wishy-washy in their beliefs. We believe in a federal government that is smaller and more fiscally responsible than what Democrats prefer, but more socially accepting than what Republicans prefer.

Unfortunately, the Democrats on the far Left and the Republicans on the far Right—both with their own ideological views—hold their respective parties hostage, so it is difficult to get consensus and little gets done. I would like to think that a simple answer to our political woes would be the creation of a Centrist Party, but with the two main parties being so well-funded and strong, I don’t believe a viable new party will emerge anytime soon. In the meantime, I will share with you what I perceive to be some of the views of those of us stuck in the middle. I will attempt to accomplish this in the form of a pamphlet rather than a book, because pamphlets are smaller and most people don’t have time for, or interest in, a long read. Pamphlets—smaller and less formal versions of a book—have played an important role in our nation’s history. Given there was no radio or television in the 1700s, their distribution was the medium through which political sparring often took place. In our busy world, I believe it is time for pamphlets to make a comeback.

This pamphlet will cover a variety of subjects. I do not speak for all Centrists, so even if you consider yourself one, this does not necessarily mean you will agree with all my ideas. I am not so presumptuous to assume that I have all the answers to our nation’s problems. But unlike our politicians, I like to hear constructive criticism and look forward to hearing from those of you with better solutions for improving our country.

Oddly, some people claim they have no interest in politics. I beg to differ, because when you think about it, politics affects every aspect of our lives. If you care about the type and cost of your healthcare; the cost of food, heating, electricity, clothing, automobiles, housing, insurance, entertainment, and vacations; the quality and cost of your children’s education; or the ability to save for retirement, you care about politics, because it is our elected officials that determine how much of our hard-earned dollars we can keep. When you add up what you pay in income taxes, Social Security taxes, Medicare taxes, property taxes, and sales taxes, I bet it’s a pretty large sum. Since our elected officials determine how they spend the money they take from us through taxation, I am sure you hope they aren’t wasting your money.

According to Neal Boortz, former host of a syndicated radio talk show and author of Somebody’s Gotta Say It, people who claim they are not interested in politics are making an affirmation that [they are] not interested in the actions of people who control [their] bank account, [their] personal freedom, and [their] very life.¹ I am sure you care a great deal about yourself and your money, so whether you realize it or not, you are already interested in politics by default.

Understanding what is going on politically is critically important for the role you need to play in our political system. Yes, you have a role; we all have a role. Our role is to vote out elected officials who are not adhering to the Constitution and serving the public’s best interest, and vote in people who will.

Getting back to your hard-earned money. Because everyone cares about their money, Mr. Boortz has gone so far as to propose that every time a congressman or senator co-sponsors a spending bill, he or she would be obligated to sign the following addendum: I, __________, in sponsoring/co-sponsoring this bill, do hereby affirm that I believe it is more important that the United States federal government seize the money appropriated herein from the taxpayers to fund this bill, than to allow taxpayers who actually earned this money to retain it for their own needs.²

So far, and not surprisingly, Mr. Boortz’s proposal has gone on deaf ears.

We live in the greatest country in the world, but unless we want to become the first generation to leave our children an America in worse shape than the one we were born into, we need good, civil communication and compromise between the Left and Right. It is my hope that this pamphlet can play a role in taking our nation in a more unifying and fiscally responsible direction.

Chapter 1

Always Remember Why Our Ancestors Came to America

In order to get the most out of this pamphlet and effectively perform your political role of being an informed voter, I believe it is important for you to reflect back, put yourself in your ancestors’ shoes, and develop a deep understanding as to why they came to America. Sadly, some of our ancestors were forced to come to America as slaves, but most chose to come to this great country because they felt they had a better opportunity to create the life they wanted for themselves and their families here than in their homeland.

Many of our ancestors were trying to leave a country where they were not free to own property and profit from the land, where hard work was not rewarded, and where economic and personal success were not readily attainable. Many wanted to leave a country where they were not allowed their own freedom of expression or thought—because of tyrannical governments. Many others wanted to leave a country where they were not allowed to worship as they saw fit.

Our ancestors came to America seeking freedom. They wanted to live, work, and worship the way they chose, and to escape large bureaucratic governments. They wanted the opportunity to create the life of their dreams, although there were no guarantees, as well as the opportunity for self-actualization through hard work. The countries many of our ancestors left had governments that were run only by a select few with no power held by We the People. They did not have a representative form of government with limited powers; often times these governments were all-powerful and left individuals with little or no opportunity to create their own economic success. Some governments owned the land and businesses, so all but a few people were dependent on the government for food, income, healthcare, and shelter. If your ancestors never came to America, can you imagine what your life would be like today?

As Americans, we want freedom and choices. We don’t want a federal government that is so large that it dictates what we think and are allowed to do. We want a federal government that represents our interests and provides us with the services the U.S. Constitution dictates and a safety net for those unable to provide for themselves. And yes, we are willing to pay taxes to receive those benefits.

Arthur Brooks says in his book The Road to Freedom that the path our ancestors were on was the Free Enterprise System, which he describes as a system of values and laws that respect private property and limits government, encourages competition and industry, celebrates achievement based on merit, and creates individual opportunity.³ Dr. Brooks also states: "A system without opportunity, where merit was not rewarded, was what [our ancestors] were escaping from in Europe."⁴

Remembering why your ancestors came to America while you read this pamphlet will put you in the right frame of mind to get the most out of it, as it will reinforce all the benefits and freedoms we have as citizens of our great country, and underscore why their loss would be catastrophic. Given all the talk about income inequality, some of you may question whether economic success is still achievable by the masses. Happily, the research shows it is—if a Centrist approach is adopted.

Chapter 2

Political Parties Are Not Good vs. Evil

Democrats vs. Republicans. Left vs. Right. Liberals/Progressives vs. Conservatives. Call the two sides whatever you would like, just don’t classify one as good and one as evil. As Yuval Levin points out in The Great Debate: Edmund Burke, Thomas Paine, and the Birth of Right and Left, each side is passionately advancing its understanding of the common good.⁵ If everyone kept that in mind, maybe there would be more civility, more compromise, less gridlock, and better outcomes.

If we start with the premise that both sides of the aisle are made up of good people, is it so hard to believe that each side has some good ideas but neither has a lock on all of them? The main